Desperation
by King Reepicheep
Summary: Set during "Guardians of the Galaxy" when the Guardians are in The Kyln Prison. When Peter and Rocket follow Gamora just as she's about to be confronted by Drax, Rocket intervenes on a crime more heinous and sinister than vendetta. Movie spoilers. AU of film. M: Content and Language (involves rape). From Rocket's POV.


**Desperation **

Theme Songs:

_Desperation_ by Eminem

You're_ Not Alone_ by Saosin

* * *

_The Kyln_

Prisons are built the same. You go through corrections, humiliation, the scolding, the jeers. It's all the fucking same. The guards don't give a shit, the guys here certainly don't and I'm stuck here playing babysitter to an Idiot, a Stockholm Syndrome victim and Groot- who I babysit anyway.

I'm a terrible babysitter.

So here I am sleeping in a cell with a bunch of degenerates when the Idiot who calls himself Star Lord (for some reason- and I thought I was egotistic) decides to get himself killed. Great. So I decided to be somewhat nice and follow the poor bastard.

It wasn't hard to realize why he was up at three in the morning. Gamora, the Stockholm Syndrome victim. Daughter of Thanos, well, in theory anyway. She claims to have betrayed him but I have a policy with claims- don't believe anyone or anything until there's proof. Claims are not absolutes, they're assumptions and assumptions get you killed. How do you think I've survived this long? By trusting people and relying on their 'claims'? Hell no! That's what made me and that's what's going to kill me. I ain't trusting any one of these nut jobs- even if they save the universe and almost kill themselves in the process, I still wouldn't trust 'em with my life. The only person I can do that with is Groot, and he's a behemoth.

Anyway, the Idiot just kept on walking. He was about to throw himself in the ring when I put out my hand in front of him. I know, I know, genetically enhanced raccoon so technically I have paws- you know what? Fuck you. They're hands to me asshole.

Three of the Vendetta Against Thanos Club were about to slit this poor Stockholm's throat when que the hulk of a sight- Drax. He goes by the Destroyer, which fits I guess if you count a complete softy on the underbelly but a hard unforgiving my kind of fellow sort of guy on the first impression.

He asked for the knife to slit her throat himself. Of course, if you were confronted by a raging machine, you'd give him whatever the hell he wants too. I was almost certain that it was going to be over when the Idiot intervened (into affairs he shouldn't be meddling in) and then over to my right was a beating of a different caliber.

It was so obnoxious and loud that if it were amplified (via speakers with 56–23,000 Hz ±3dB that is) it would wake up the entire prison and cause every single one of these bastards to kill whoever it was (or whatever it was- the speakers perhaps) to kill seventeen times over.

The Idiot, Stockholm and Misinterpreted Metaphor (Drax) stopped a moment and looked over.

"Can you keep it down please?" The Idiot said.

I rolled my eyes, sighed, left the weight fall on my shoulders (again) and walked over to the cell. The beating continued. As I got closer I realized a bit more clearly what was going on. Someone was being "penetrated".

Screams of anguish and pleading to stop filled my head with flashbacks of a science lab and genetics testing. I understood what it was like- to feel violated, to be disrespected.

Now I'm no saint, believe me, I'm a devil- a sneaky little one too that tolerates a lot of shit but if there's one thing that doesn't fly with me is penetration. I knocked on the cell door. I tried the calm and collected approach first.

"Hey, you alright in there?" I asked, obviously knowing the answer.

No one answered- it was just more unwilled fucking. I beat the door with my fist three times. I was starting to get pissed off- mostly because I'm a diagnosed psychopath and I don't like being ignored.

"Hey!" I screamed. "Knock it off!"

I was ignored again. I looked over to Drax and held out my hand. "Can I borrow that for a second?"

Drax laughed, "No, puny mammal."

I despise dolts. Especially those ones who call me mammal (and don't get me started with vermin). I let it slide though (after all, he was there to commit vendetta). Thankfully, Stockholm Syndrome understood that I need to resolve an issue and pulled one of her own out.

"Catch." She said as if I wasn't going to do that anyway.

I caught the damned thing and man it was awesome. So slender, so sleek and deadly. I could feel it and I felt awesome.

Walking back over to the door, I tapped it with the knife blade. "If you don't open up, I'm coming in there."

The door finally opened. Standing in front of me was a naked man with nothing better to do than ruin other people's lives. His Special Friend stared me in the face. It covered in the Milky Way and let me just say, it was disgusting. Moving around like some kind of worm in dirt. Then I realized, I had a knife in my hand. I looked up at this bastard and smiled a bit.

"You having fun in there?"

"Yes." He said stupidly. I love gullible idiots.

"Anybody else in there?" I asked somewhat loudly.

"Yes." Someone answered. They were on the floor still, ashamed and defeated by this son of a bitch.

"You're alright," I said, "you can come out now."

Fortunately, the person had the decency to cover themselves up before coming up to the cell door. There was only so much of Nature's Gift I could take. Then again, if it were the right kind of Nature's Gift I probably wouldn't mind it- no Rocket, control yourself, remember what you're doing.

When the person came up to the door, I had half a mind to take him with me and get the hell out of here. That's right, I said him. The victim was a young- that's right, I said young- boy. Probably about twelve or so.

The man, that smug sly son of a bitch who did this, smiled and laughed. "Surprised?"

"No," I said, "I'm pissed off!"

I stabbed him in his Special Friend. Tip first and shoved it. He collapsed instantly and began pleading for his own mercy. I just kept on forcing it and when I hit the hilt, I twisted it.

"Please!" He screamed. "Have mercy!"

I stopped a second. I couldn't believe that this motherfucker was pleading for fucking mercy. I leaned down in his face, looked him in the eye, smiled a bit and simply said:

"No."

I moved the blade up, completely shattering his Special Friend and I went so far as to go into his the guy's torso. I basically tore this guy in half. When it was it done, the knife was bloody, covered in certain body fluids, brain matter and it smelled like shit. Literally. The body was a pig carcass, or it would be in a matter of hours.

The kid stared at me and I stared at him.

"Thanks." He said.

"You're welcome." I said. "Next time don't go into someone else's room."

"This is my room." He replied.

I peered my head inside the place, looked around and did something I would never do again, smelled a human crotch. I did this for two reasons, one, to check for semen, and second, I have an acute sense of smell. Being a genetically enhanced abomination apparently means that you can pick up when someone has a disease or not. He was not clean. According to my statistics, the kid probably had three more years. Maybe.

I looked up at him, noticing for the first time how innocent he was. He had a life, he had dreams, he had a future. It was taken away from him by a sick perverted bastard and for a moment, I felt guilty. I could've done something sooner, maybe even stopped the guy from doing it in the first place. I didn't do that though. I just knocked on the door like an asshole.

"You alright?" I asked.

"Yes." He said. He meant to say 'No Rocket, I'm not alright, thanks to you I have AIDS. You're a real pal, thanks for nothing!' As I was internally beating myself up he told me his back story. Why he did this, I'll never know, but I listened anyway- I owed him that much.

Apparently this kid wasn't supposed to be here, he was kidnapped by a couple of slave traders near the planet called Olympus. He was a slave for most of his single digits and when he was ten was captured by Ronan of all people. Ronan killed his parents and his friends and then because of this, this kid tried to kill the crazy psychopath all by himself. Imagine that, who'd a thought that I would be standing in front of a little solider. Anyway, he failed of course, somehow made his way to Xandar was put in this prison labeled as "a legal prisoner of war". A necessity to prevent Ronan from killing everybody- this kid really pissed him off apparently.

"Is all that true?" I asked, not believing a word of it.

"Yes." He said. "My name is John, or at least, it used to be."

Not the name I would've picked for you kid, but hey, if it's what your mother named you- it's what your mother named you.

"Are you here to get me out of here?" He asked.

I couldn't bring myself to say 'No, sorry, can't do that today. Maybe next time'. Even though I knew that would be the case, I couldn't leave him here forever. It just wouldn't be right. I know, me having morals probably isn't the best idea, believe me, I don't like it either, I'm a selfish individual and selfish individuals don't give a shit. Usually.

"It's alright," John said after silence from me. "I understand."

Thanks for giving me a good reason for me to not care anymore. You're a brilliant, stupid and dumb kid. You got yourself in this mess all because this Ronan nut killed your family. Congratulations, welcome to the club because apparently I'm about to be a part of it too. Damn it, my own conscience gave me a reason to care.

"Glad you understand where I'm coming from John. Well, see you around and good luck somewhere else!" I said and with that I walked back towards the Three Stooges with knife in hand thinking- _You don't deserve to be here kid._

Gamora shook her head, "You can keep that."

I shrugged and pocket it securely on my person. I could clean it and myself off later.

* * *

When we escaped and were on the tower, I noticed an intercom system. I smiled a bit because it was equipped with those speakers with 56–23,000 Hz ±3dB specs. I pressed the big red button and spoke into it.

"Listen up, there's a twelve year old kid in this piece of shit prison. If anyone touches him, know that I'll be coming for you and there won't be a single shred of mercy!"

I paused a moment, I wanted to give a special shout out. "I'm coming back for you kid, that's a promise."

I don't know if he heard me or not, but I meant what I said- if anyone tries or does anything to him, I'll kill the bastard.

So this brings us to the present...

Guess where I am now? That same fucking prison keeping a promise. Yeah that's right, I'm keeping promises now.

* * *

**Interlude for _"Harbinger: Were It So Easy"_**

**If you are so inclined to review, it would be most appreciated. I'll even return the favor. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours.  
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